New Rock Roundup Vol 34

Published by

Fox Reviews Rock

on

26th Jan 2026

This is our brand new weekly feature (Normally) on a Monday! The New Rock Roundup will rank the latest releases spanning across the world of rock music. With entries from rock, metal, metalcore, punk, pop punk, alternative and indie!

There will be a brief explanation about why I (Fox) enjoy the song in question from each category before I rank them at the end in terms of my own preference. I would love to hear your own person ranking as well as why you agree with or disagree with my comments.

Follow the playlist!

New Rock Roundup

Rock

Black Stone Cherry ft (Tyler Connolly) – Don’t You (Forget About Me).

The first of a few covers on this weeks playlist! This one is a deep south cover of the amazing “Don’t You” originally released in 1985 by Simple Minds. The accent on the vocals here really do add something different and makes it a completely different song. I also enjoyed the ft by Tyler Connolly from the amazing Theory Of A Deadman. A solid song to start us off this week for sure. Bravo Black Stone Cherry!

Black Stone Cherry ft (Tyler Connolly) – Don’t You (Forget About Me) (All Rights Retained By Black Stone Cherry & Tyler Connolly)

Metal

Megadeth – Ride The Lightning.

Continuing the covers theme is Megadeth with Ride The Lightning. Although you could potentially say it’s not a cover bearing in mind Dave had credits for the song from his time in Metallica. With his vocals the song takes a different path than the one I am used to. There are a lot of rumours of a joint tour between Megadeth and Metallica and if that happened, well I’ll be in the queue for a ticket!

Megadeth – Ride The Lightning (All Rights Retained By Megadeth)

Metalcore

Fire From The Gods – Human.

Fire From The Gods might sound angry on the outside but that does not stop them from producing some really intricate songs. This one for sure goes out the gates in your face but when you get to the chorus its this delicate vocal performance that gives me goosebumps. I know Metalcore is not for everyone, but give it a few listens and see if you get past the heavier parts and appreciate its full beauty. Special note here to the different styles in one song.

Fire From The Gods – Human (All Rights Retained By Fire From The Gods)

Punk

Goldfinger ft (Spencer Charnas) – Derelict.

Ska/Punk legends Goldfinger fill the spot this week with a little help from one of my favourite singers (Spencer Charnas – Ice Nine Kills). His voice combined with the typical punk speed is a different angle I didn’t know would work. Spoiler alert it does… The ska like tunes midway really adds a completly different element too!

Goldfinger ft (Spencer Charnas) – Derelict (All Rights Retained By Goldfinger & Spencer Charnas)

Pop Punk

Brutalligators – Safe Haven.

A band I have never heard of but LOVE their name. I happen to really enjoy their music too which is always a bonus! They have this really cool bass undertone throughout the song, combined with almost melancholic sounding vocals. A different dynamic wrapped up in a pop-punk song.

Brutalligators – Safe Haven (All Rights Retained By Brutalligators)

Alternative

Ghost – It’s A Sin.

Ok so I’ll be honest Ghost could pretty much cover any song ever released and I would love it! This Pet Shop Boys song is no exception. The ghoulish band fronted by Tobias Forge just know how to put their own spin on things. Do not be put off by their scary visuals this band is more like a metal Abba!

Ghost – It’s A Sin (All Rights Retained By Ghost)

Indie

Arctic Monkeys – Opening Night.

So this is an odd song for Arctic Monkeys. They are no where near what they were in their earlier days. It’s softer now, slower and less attitude. But in this case that works, it still has the Indie guitars and hooks but that softer tone works. Vocal delivery is as light as a feather. The song gets quicker the longer it goes on, this speed is more to my own person taste.